Ferrari must be "ready" for "brave" Leclerc move

Ferrari engineer Jock Clear believes his team must be "ready" to manage their "brave" move to bring Charles Leclerc into the side next season.

Leclerc has been announced as the man to replace Kimi Raikkonen next season, with the Monegasque driver becoming the second-youngest driver in the Italian's history.

The Sauber driver has impressed in his rookie season in Formula One, with the Ferrari-powered Sauber, earning him a promotion to drive alongside Sebastian Vettel next season.

Clear was asked about how crucial it is to manage Leclerc well when he makes the switch, and replied to Autosport: "One of the comments that many people made was 'is he ready?' - well, we have to be ready as well.

"Ferrari have to be ready to take this step. It is a brave step that Ferrari has made, and we're all pleased about the fact that we're willing to make that step. But we have to be ready to give him the opportunity and support him in the right way.

"Hopefully he'll go on to great things. I think the relationship with Seb will be important. We need to manage that very positively and make sure the team as a whole grows, not just on Charles' side and not just on Seb's side."